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GM, Ford, Toyota, Honda report sales declines, Chrysler rises
The Associated Press
Issue date: 5/2/07 Section: News
DETROIT - April was such a lousy auto sales month that every major manufacturer but Chrysler reported a decrease from the same month last year.
Even Toyota.
General Motors Corp., Ford Motor Co., Honda Motor Co. and Nissan Motor Corp. all showed declines as automakers released their monthly U.S. sales numbers on Tuesday, but the drop for Toyota Motor Corp. countered a nearly two-year trend of rising sales, sometimes in double digits.
Toyota sales, which include the Toyota, Lexus and Scion brands, dropped 4.4 percent to 210,457 last month from 219,965 in April 2006, the company said Tuesday. It was the first year-over-year monthly decline for Toyota since May of 2005.
The Japanese automaker has seen double-digit increases in recent months and it seemed like the rising sales would never end. In March, for example, its sales jumped 11.7 percent.
"This certainly is uncharacteristic of Toyota," said Joe Barker, senior manager of global sales analysis for CSM Worldwide, an automotive forecasting firm in Northville. "I would expect them to rebound strongly next month."
U.S. light vehicle sales for all automakers declined 7.6 percent last month to 1.34 million from roughly 1.45 million a year ago, according to Autodata Corp.
Industry analysts say the bad month is a harbinger of things to come for the whole industry in the second half of the year with economic uncertainty, high consumer debt, the housing slowdown and rising gasoline prices contributing to a softer automotive market.
Consumers also are waiting for incentives to rise as many manufacturers try to reduce them, said Jesse Toprak, senior analyst for the Edmunds.com auto Web site.
"They're waiting for the next big sale and perhaps postponing their purchases because of this combination of factors," Toprak said. "They don't have a lot of confidence in the housing market, gas prices are higher."
Nissan reported the worst decline in April with sales down 18 percent from the same month a year ago. The company sold 71,124 vehicles, down from 86,720 in April of last year.
Even Toyota.
General Motors Corp., Ford Motor Co., Honda Motor Co. and Nissan Motor Corp. all showed declines as automakers released their monthly U.S. sales numbers on Tuesday, but the drop for Toyota Motor Corp. countered a nearly two-year trend of rising sales, sometimes in double digits.
Toyota sales, which include the Toyota, Lexus and Scion brands, dropped 4.4 percent to 210,457 last month from 219,965 in April 2006, the company said Tuesday. It was the first year-over-year monthly decline for Toyota since May of 2005.
The Japanese automaker has seen double-digit increases in recent months and it seemed like the rising sales would never end. In March, for example, its sales jumped 11.7 percent.
"This certainly is uncharacteristic of Toyota," said Joe Barker, senior manager of global sales analysis for CSM Worldwide, an automotive forecasting firm in Northville. "I would expect them to rebound strongly next month."
U.S. light vehicle sales for all automakers declined 7.6 percent last month to 1.34 million from roughly 1.45 million a year ago, according to Autodata Corp.
Industry analysts say the bad month is a harbinger of things to come for the whole industry in the second half of the year with economic uncertainty, high consumer debt, the housing slowdown and rising gasoline prices contributing to a softer automotive market.
Consumers also are waiting for incentives to rise as many manufacturers try to reduce them, said Jesse Toprak, senior analyst for the Edmunds.com auto Web site.
"They're waiting for the next big sale and perhaps postponing their purchases because of this combination of factors," Toprak said. "They don't have a lot of confidence in the housing market, gas prices are higher."
Nissan reported the worst decline in April with sales down 18 percent from the same month a year ago. The company sold 71,124 vehicles, down from 86,720 in April of last year.
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